Ants in the house are the scourge of many homes in summertime leaving many people to hate the summer and the annual flying ants invasion which they expect the summer will bring
Only the unfortunates who have suffered it will realise the true horror of flying ants in their own homes.
Having an infestation of ordinary wingless ants is bad enough but when they go through their annual mating phase the position can become unbearable.
Ants often form colonies in the sub-floor areas and in the wall cavities of our homes and these colonies will survive for many years if left untreated becoming progressively more persistent each year.
Our dwellings are warm and dry and make the ideal places for a thriving ant colony; even solid hard floor is not a hindrance to and ant colony.
Our central heating systems raises their metabolism even in the winter months and my earliest ant call-out was on my birthday, which is in January!
Ants like a sandy soil and there are many areas in Lancashire, Cheshire and Manchester which tend to provide more ant infestations than most others, Southport, Blackpool, Bolton, Sale & Altrincham come to mind as regular ant spots.
Unfortunately it is during their mating period that they are most troublesome. Here in Lancashire, Cheshire and Manchester this tends to be pretty often around the third or fourth week in July.
Ants mate in flight and sometime around mid-summer the colony releases flying immature Queens and flying males which in nature would fly off and mate on the wing. Many thousands of these winged ants are produced by each and nests tend to time their release so that they mate with ants from neighbouring.
Usually this process starts after a couple of days of hot, dry weather and will often continue for about a week or so although smaller releases will extend throughout most of June, July & August.
Unfortunately when the nest is built under the floor of the dwelling the effects can be devastating, literally thousands of flying are produced into the lower rooms, aiming for windows as they go towards the light.
This can be very distressing for some people leading to severe emotional upset to the level that people learn to dread the summertime and have actually left their house to avoid the plague of ants which they know comes each summer.
The poor summers of the last three years have meant that ant call-outs were reduced on earlier but ants apparently have a way of catching up and 2010 might be a particularly troublesome year.
Most people who have this problem attempt for DIY solutions with powders from DIY stores etc but mostly these efforts are doomed to failure as they are not getting to the heart of the problem which is the colony itself, hidden away safely in the cavity wall or under the floor.
Fortunately for most people the solution is at hand.
At Harrier Pest Prevention (subject to site survey) we are able to cure this problem and give an extendable three year guarantee.
The process which is carried out mostly from the outside of the house, is perfectly safe for animals and children and produces no smell, involves drilling little holes into the cavity walls of the property, not unlike a damp-proof course injection and blowing an insecticidal powder into the cavity wall under pressure.
This forms an impenetrable barrier across which the ants cannot go and along with a precautionary internal spray treatment (if deemed necessary) will slowly bring the ant colony under control.
The holes, which are only 8mm in diameter stay open so it is simply a matter of topping up the cavity walls every three years to extend the life of the guarantee in three year periods.
This treatment is best done out in the early spring however it can be done at any time of year.
As a strictly limited time offer in our quiet period we are offering 25 percent off the normalstandard cost until May 30 2010. Whilst we usually cover the whole of Lancashire, Cheshire and Greater Manchester, we are able to travel further afield but this will be reflected in the cost.
For a chat or to arrange an appointment contact Harrier Pest Prevention on Free Phone 0800 019 8382 or 01257 230637
Ant Pest Control ? Don’t suffer flying ant horrors, act now!